Hearing Statement- House Natural Resources Great American Outdoors Act
PDF Version of Letter and Chart of Trails Projects
September 15, 2025
Letter for the Record: House Natural Resources Committee, Federal Lands Subcommittee Hearing: The Great American Outdoors Act: Modernizing and Maintaining National Parks to Celebrate America’s 250th Birthday
Committee Chairman Westerman, Subcommittee Chairman Tiffany, Subcommittee Ranking Member Neguse and Members of the Federal Lands Subcommittee,
On behalf of American Hiking Society (AHS) and the 63 million strong hiking community we write in support of the extension of the Great American Outdoors Act National Parks and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF) and the impact it has had in improving outdoor recreation and public lands access for hikers across the country.
We strongly support the committee's work to extend the LRF and look forward to working with the committee to fully realize the fund’s intended impact in addressing deferred maintenance needs across federally managed public lands.
Trails, Trail Bridges, and Trail Related Projects Have Benefitted from the LRF and Addressed Deferred Maintenance
Between 2021 and 2025, at least 558 trail, trail bridge, and trail related deferred maintenance projects have or will be funded through LRF across the Forest Service, BLM, Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service.[1] Attachment 1 provides a complete list of trail and trail related projects based on available information from the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Forest Service.
This includes 32 projects across DOI sites totaling $286.623M and 526 Forest Service projects. These trail projects and other projects impact the user experience and directly benefit hikers and other trail users by ensuring our public land remains open and accessible for all to use. Many of these projects are supported and completed by partners and volunteers that leverage the funding provided through the LRF, maximizing the impact of the fund.
Special recognition is warranted for the Forest Service in their approach to implementation of the LRF and the public outreach and partnership efforts undertaken to achieve the fund’s goals to address deferred maintenance.[2] Through robust public engagement, transparency in the selection of projects, and robust project partnerships, the Forest Service is a shining example of how to maximize the limited funds available through the LRF to generate the biggest impact.
Agency Allocation of Legacy Restoration Fund in Reauthorization
American Hiking Society supports a reexamination and allocation of the proportionality of the Legacy Restoration Fund to each land management agency based on each agency’s actual deferred maintenance backlog. We echo the recommendations of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and others that extending the LRF provides the opportunity to adjust these allocations so they are more in line with each agencies’ share of the total backlog, reflecting the reality that each of them provide important services to the American people, in different geographical regions, with different recreational experiences, with separate legislative requirements and functional needs.
Specifically for the Forest Service, a reallocation ensuring that the USFS receives 21% more closely aligns with actual burdens.
Ensuring all components of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can access the Legacy Restoration Fund
As enacted, the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund identifies the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) as a beneficiary of LRF funding, however the statutory text in explicitly referencing the National Wildlife Refuge System inadvertently excludes the National Fish Hatchery System thereby prohibiting FWS from addressing deferred maintenance needs at these sites which provide similar types of recreation and public lands access as the Refuge System. We ask the committee to include language to clarify that deferred maintenance funding for FWS through the LRF can include the National Fish Hatchery System by adding “and National Fish Hatchery System” following “in the National Wildlife Refuge System” to Sec. 200402(e)(1) of the law. The America the Beautiful Act (S. 1547) introduced in the Senate makes this technical correction as well. American Hiking Society supports this legislation.
Increased Annual Funding is Required to Fully Address Deferred Maintenance Backlog
While not the purview of this committee it is important to note that the annual maintenance needs of federal land managers outpaced annual appropriations funding resulting in the continued growth of deferred maintenance. Fully addressing deferred maintenance and stopping further backlog growth requires a congressional commitment to providing adequate annual funding to federal land management agencies.[3] 260 trail and trail related organizations and entities have called on congress to increase funding for our nation's trails through the annual appropriations process.
Sincerely,
Tyler Ray
Senior Director for Programs and Advocacy
[1] Data pulled from Forest Service and DOI databases. https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/gaoa; https://www.doi.gov/gaoa-project-data.
[2] https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/gaoa/partnerships
[3] Public Witness Testimony from American Hiking Society and 259 trail organizations in support of robust funding for trails. https://americanhiking.org/american-hiking-and-259-organizations-support-fy26-trail-funding/